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Tuesday’s Quick Hits: Trump in Missoula, Gianforte, Voting, & More

There will be many chapters in your life. Don’t get lost in the one you’re in now. – Unknown

Today’s quick hits deal with these important subjects:

Trump in Missoula (Important Update)

Gianforte & Taxpayer Dollars

False Information on Voting

In the Red

Trump in Missoula:

The Missoulian reports that the location of the President Donald Trump’s Make America Great Again (MAGA) rally in Missoula has been changed because organizers wanted to have pictures of Trump speaking in front of Air Force One. The rally will now be held at the Minuteman aviation hangar west of the Missoula International Airport terminal at 6:30 p.m. Thursday. The event had been scheduled at the Neptune Aviation hangar, which is east of the terminal building.

Gianforte & Taxpayer Dollars:

The Kathleen Williams campaign for U.S. House sent an email on Monday accusing her opponent, U.S. Representative Greg Gianforte, of sending a mailing expressly prohibited by the U.S. House of Representatives.

The Williams campaign contends Gianforte sent an official (taxpayer funded) mass mailing to Montanans within 90 days of the November 6 election. They show a flier he sent, but I do not see a date on it. They say it was received 24 days before the election. I’ve received a couple of official fliers from Gianforte, but I can’t remember when they arrived.

I have my doubts that with so many checks and balances in the U.S. House Administration they would allow any member to mail anything within the 90 days prior to an election. There are 435 members up for election every two years, so they should have the system down pretty well.

If the Williams campaign files a complaint, I guess we’ll see if it gets any traction. It’s probably a nothing burger.

False Information on Voting:

We see it almost every election. Someone posts an official-looking notice that Republicans will vote on November 6 and Democrats are supposed to vote on November 7 (the day after Election Day). Sometimes the dates are reversed depending on who is sending it.

There are some ignorant people who will believe these posts, too.

Reuters reported that Facebook Inc will ban false information about voting requirements and fact-check fake reports of violence or long lines at polling stations ahead of next month’s U.S. midterm elections.

I’ve already seen a couple of fake notices about different voting dates for Republicans and Democrats. Hopefully, someone will start prosecuting the offenders.

In the Red:

Reuters reports that the U.S. government closed the 2018 fiscal year $779 billion in the red, its highest deficit in six years, as Republican-led tax cuts pinched revenues and expenses rose on a growing national debt, according to data released on Monday by the Treasury Department.

I think it’s safe to say this one belongs to Trump and the Republicans.

So what is the difference between a deficit and debt? How Stuff Works describes it this way:

In simple terms, a budget deficit is the difference between what the federal government spends (called outlays) and what it takes in (called revenue or receipts). The national debt, also known as the public debt, is the result of the federal government borrowing money to cover years and years of budget deficits.

The last time we had a balanced budget was when Bill Clinton was President. We also had a Republican Congress then, too.

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